Islamabad, July 21: Pakistan Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi will be leading Pakistans delegation to the two-day 16th ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) beginning in Phuket, Thailand tomorrow.
”The Foreign Minister will highlight Pakistans critical role in the ongoing struggle against terrorism and its impact on Pakistans economy,” Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said in a statement here today. He will inform the participants about the law enforcement operations in Swat Valley and adjoining areas, as well as Governments efforts to rehabilitate the dislocated persons. ”The Foreign Minister will also reiterate Pakistans position on regional security, underlining the need for a holistic regional approach to address the challenges facing South Asia,” Mr Basit added. The meeting will discuss regional and international issues, review ARF inter-session activities and deliberate on future directions of the ARF, which has in its folds Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, China, EU, India, Japan, South and North Koreas, Mongolia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Russia, Sri Lanka, Timore Leste and the US in addition to 10 ASEAN member states.
The role of ARF in peace and security in Asia-Pacific region with focus on Afghanistan and Korean Peninsula; non-traditional security threats with focus on disaster relief and pandemics; and role of ARF in emerging regional architecture are key agenda points. The leaders will also discuss ARF Vision Statement setting future directions of the Forum. On the margins of the ARF, the Foreign Minister has an extensive programme of bilateral meetings with his counterparts, including the US Secretary of State, Foreign Ministers of Australia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Russia and the host Thailand.
Pakistan joined ARF in 2004 and has been actively participating in its activities since then. ”Presence in the ARF provides Pakistan an opportunity to interact closely with South East Asian states as well as other major powers and present its viewpoint on important contemporary issues of regional and global concern,” the spokesman added.
The ARF, the security arm of ASEAN, aims at fostering constructive dialogue and consultation on political and security issues of common interest and concerns and making notable contributions to the efforts on confidence-building and preventive diplomacy in Asia-Pacific region.
—-Agencies